This article grossly distorted both the nature of the classes in question, and USCRI's reasons for holding them. Artan Serjanej's similarly and surprisingly misleading comments were made without the knowledge of USCRI staff, and he is no longer a USCRI volunteer.
The following is the text of the email I sent Sara prior to the publication of the article above:
Dear Sarah,
The USCRI Albany field office's March 2008 move to a new an much larger office at 991 Broadway has enabled its staff to hold more education events for refugee clients and conduct more outreach activities with local organizations. The Albany field office is now working with local organizations such as the New York Civil Liberties Union and Equinox Inc. to educate and empower refugees to understand how laws and law enforcement work, and how to defend their rights here in the United States. The program, which began only two months ago, is called Legal Rights and Responsibilities in the United States. It is being run by my colleague Erika Hague and me with significant help from Melanie Trimble of the New York Civil Liberties Union, Alicia Borns of Equinox Inc., and Artan Serjanej of Tully Rinckey PLLC.
On June 6th, Melanie and Artan did a basic civil liberties training with almost the entire field office staff, and the ongoing Family Life and the Law workshops (they cover a lot more than domestic violence, so it would be incorrect to call them domestic violence prevention workshops) were an offshoot of that training. We've held workshops for French and English-speaking male refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Arabic-speaking Iraqi male refugees so far. By the end of the summer, we will have held Family Life and the Law workshops for Congolese, Burmese, Iraqi and Afghan clients of both sexes.
We also intend to hold workshops to educate our clients on; 1) their civil rights and civil liberties, 2) how to recognize and fight discrimination in housing and employment, and 3) what to know about encountering law enforcement in the United States.
The workshops dealing with discrimination will involve interactive presentations and role-playing, and should be quite lively and well-attended. We have not yet set a date for the first one, but I will email you when we do. It should be soon, and I think that would make a good story.
The aim of the Legal Rights and Responsibilities program is to give our clients the knowledge and tools necessary to understand and defend their rights, as well as their legal obligations, in the United States.
The dates for the next Family Life and the Law workshops that may be open to the press are July 12th and July 16th, both for refugees from Burma, and both beginning at noon at the USCRI office.
For more information, don't hesitate to email or call me.
Posted on February 18 at 2:37 p.m. (Suggest removal)
This article grossly distorted both the nature of the classes in question, and USCRI's reasons for holding them. Artan Serjanej's similarly and surprisingly misleading comments were made without the knowledge of USCRI staff, and he is no longer a USCRI volunteer.
The following is the text of the email I sent Sara prior to the publication of the article above:
Dear Sarah,
The USCRI Albany field office's March 2008 move to a new an much larger office at 991 Broadway has enabled its staff to hold more education events for refugee clients and conduct more outreach activities with local organizations. The Albany field office is now working with local organizations such as the New York Civil Liberties Union and Equinox Inc. to educate and empower refugees to understand how laws and law enforcement work, and how to defend their rights here in the United States. The program, which began only two months ago, is called Legal Rights and Responsibilities in the United States. It is being run by my colleague Erika Hague and me with significant help from Melanie Trimble of the New York Civil Liberties Union, Alicia Borns of Equinox Inc., and Artan Serjanej of Tully Rinckey PLLC.
On June 6th, Melanie and Artan did a basic civil liberties training with almost the entire field office staff, and the ongoing Family Life and the Law workshops (they cover a lot more than domestic violence, so it would be incorrect to call them domestic violence prevention workshops) were an offshoot of that training. We've held workshops for French and English-speaking male refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Arabic-speaking Iraqi male refugees so far. By the end of the summer, we will have held Family Life and the Law workshops for Congolese, Burmese, Iraqi and Afghan clients of both sexes.
We also intend to hold workshops to educate our clients on; 1) their civil rights and civil liberties, 2) how to recognize and fight discrimination in housing and employment, and 3) what to know about encountering law enforcement in the United States.
The workshops dealing with discrimination will involve interactive presentations and role-playing, and should be quite lively and well-attended. We have not yet set a date for the first one, but I will email you when we do. It should be soon, and I think that would make a good story.
The aim of the Legal Rights and Responsibilities program is to give our clients the knowledge and tools necessary to understand and defend their rights, as well as their legal obligations, in the United States.
The dates for the next Family Life and the Law workshops that may be open to the press are July 12th and July 16th, both for refugees from Burma, and both beginning at noon at the USCRI office.
For more information, don't hesitate to email or call me.
kind regards,
Una
On Classes aid men new to the U.S.